Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 4:52 am
NEW Cardiff City striker Fraizer Campbell has claimed that the Bluebirds are better equipped for the Premier League than a lot of clubs already in the top flight.
The 25-year-old arrived in the Welsh capital for £600,000 from Sunderland last week and, after hooking up with his new teammates at their training camp in Dubai, he now goes straight into manager Malky Mackay’s squad to face Leeds on Saturday.
Huddersfield-born Campbell knows a thing or two about the Premier League – he began his footballing life at Manchester United and had a loan spell at Tottenham before joining the Black Cats for £3.5m in July 2009.
He’s no stranger to the Championship either and knows what it takes to find a route out of it having helped Hull to promotion back in 2008 after a blistering loan spell in which he fired 15 goals in 32 league outings for the Tigers.
Mackay will be hoping for much of the same now as his table-toppers, ten points clear with 18 Championship games left, look to defy recent heartbreak and put the club back into the top-flight for the first time in more than half a century.
Campbell for one thinks it is long overdue.
“Cardiff are doing brilliantly in the league and don’t really need more players, but if I can help push them that extra bit it would be good,” said Campbell.
“I’d love to score goals, of course, but if I don’t and Cardiff City are promoted that will be a positive. The main thing is to maintain our position.
“This is not about individuals, it’s about the whole team doing all the right things and hopefully that will set us up for promotion.
“This, for me, is the season when Cardiff go up. I’m
not interested in the past, this is all about this season and what we do now. Let’s get rid of talking about what has happened before.
“Cardiff is a club equipped for Premier League football. the winning mentality is there with players and coaching staff, we just need to go out and put
things from the training pitch into matches.
“I’ve been at Premier League teams where it hasn’t been as good as it is at Cardiff now.”
Campbell may be regarded as a bright striking talent, but mention of his name often brings concerns about his injury record.
On August 29, 2010, he sustained a serious cruciate ligament injury in Sunderland’s 1–0 win against Manchester City. Worse was to follow when an attempted comeback in April 2011 saw the problem flare up again, leading to surgery.
But Campbell made his return for the Black Cats in January 2012, and insists any nagging injury fears are now well wide of the mark.
“I need to be playing football and this is a great chance for me,” said Campbell.
“I was injured for a long time and had a slow start getting back into it, but now I can get some games and get to be the best I can be.
“The injury is fine. I’ve been back training for more than a year and simply have to keep on top of it. You get two injuries and suddenly people are saying you are injury prone, but you can’t let that effect you, All I can do is stay fit and keep playing.”
Campbell revealed he will be drawing inspiration from the man he may be partnering up front at Cardiff, Craig Bellamy a man no stranger to knee problems himself.
And Campbell said he had already the witnessed the way the Wales international had a tendency to drive his teammates on in training.
“Some of the players like Craig Bellamy have had knee
problems in the past and he has managed to stay on top of it,” said Campbell.
“Chatting to Bellamy and seeing how he coped is a help, he is somebody who has been through similar things and who can help you move on.
“Craig likes to speak his mind, doesn’t he? That’s great. For me if you are slacking you are going to get told and
that can alter everybody’s mentality in training.”
Campbell has only scored one goal in the last year as he struggled to make an impact up on Wearside following his injury. Although that strike was at Old Trafford for Sunderland against the club where he arrived aged 10.
And, with the Bluebirds now looking to him to chip in with the strikes to ease their path to the Premier League, Campbell, who earned a cap for England in February last year, said he liked to think he still knew where the net was.
“I’m confident about scoring, I enjoy scoring and I haven’t forgotten how to do it,” said Campbell, who inked a three-and-a-half-year-deal in the Welsh capital.
“If the team is playing well, I will get chances to score. I don’t set goal targets, the only target I have here is for promotion and anything above that would be an added bonus, I really am not bothered about how many goals I get. I would love to score a shed load, but the main thing here is promotion.”
And Campbell is indeed bubbling with confidence when it comes to the Bluebirds’ chances of making the step up this time around.
Whilst at Hull, the striker had to go through the play-offs, seeing off Watford on route where a certain Malky Mackay was then coach.
But with the Bluebirds Campbell believes he won’t be requiring such a lottery to reach the promised land and he’s prepared to risk his summer break on it.
Campbell added: “I’m going to book my holidays for the day after the last game of the season. I’ve got no plans for the play-offs this time.”
Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballna ... z2JQoUyFys
The 25-year-old arrived in the Welsh capital for £600,000 from Sunderland last week and, after hooking up with his new teammates at their training camp in Dubai, he now goes straight into manager Malky Mackay’s squad to face Leeds on Saturday.
Huddersfield-born Campbell knows a thing or two about the Premier League – he began his footballing life at Manchester United and had a loan spell at Tottenham before joining the Black Cats for £3.5m in July 2009.
He’s no stranger to the Championship either and knows what it takes to find a route out of it having helped Hull to promotion back in 2008 after a blistering loan spell in which he fired 15 goals in 32 league outings for the Tigers.
Mackay will be hoping for much of the same now as his table-toppers, ten points clear with 18 Championship games left, look to defy recent heartbreak and put the club back into the top-flight for the first time in more than half a century.
Campbell for one thinks it is long overdue.
“Cardiff are doing brilliantly in the league and don’t really need more players, but if I can help push them that extra bit it would be good,” said Campbell.
“I’d love to score goals, of course, but if I don’t and Cardiff City are promoted that will be a positive. The main thing is to maintain our position.
“This is not about individuals, it’s about the whole team doing all the right things and hopefully that will set us up for promotion.
“This, for me, is the season when Cardiff go up. I’m
not interested in the past, this is all about this season and what we do now. Let’s get rid of talking about what has happened before.
“Cardiff is a club equipped for Premier League football. the winning mentality is there with players and coaching staff, we just need to go out and put
things from the training pitch into matches.
“I’ve been at Premier League teams where it hasn’t been as good as it is at Cardiff now.”
Campbell may be regarded as a bright striking talent, but mention of his name often brings concerns about his injury record.
On August 29, 2010, he sustained a serious cruciate ligament injury in Sunderland’s 1–0 win against Manchester City. Worse was to follow when an attempted comeback in April 2011 saw the problem flare up again, leading to surgery.
But Campbell made his return for the Black Cats in January 2012, and insists any nagging injury fears are now well wide of the mark.
“I need to be playing football and this is a great chance for me,” said Campbell.
“I was injured for a long time and had a slow start getting back into it, but now I can get some games and get to be the best I can be.
“The injury is fine. I’ve been back training for more than a year and simply have to keep on top of it. You get two injuries and suddenly people are saying you are injury prone, but you can’t let that effect you, All I can do is stay fit and keep playing.”
Campbell revealed he will be drawing inspiration from the man he may be partnering up front at Cardiff, Craig Bellamy a man no stranger to knee problems himself.
And Campbell said he had already the witnessed the way the Wales international had a tendency to drive his teammates on in training.
“Some of the players like Craig Bellamy have had knee
problems in the past and he has managed to stay on top of it,” said Campbell.
“Chatting to Bellamy and seeing how he coped is a help, he is somebody who has been through similar things and who can help you move on.
“Craig likes to speak his mind, doesn’t he? That’s great. For me if you are slacking you are going to get told and
that can alter everybody’s mentality in training.”
Campbell has only scored one goal in the last year as he struggled to make an impact up on Wearside following his injury. Although that strike was at Old Trafford for Sunderland against the club where he arrived aged 10.
And, with the Bluebirds now looking to him to chip in with the strikes to ease their path to the Premier League, Campbell, who earned a cap for England in February last year, said he liked to think he still knew where the net was.
“I’m confident about scoring, I enjoy scoring and I haven’t forgotten how to do it,” said Campbell, who inked a three-and-a-half-year-deal in the Welsh capital.
“If the team is playing well, I will get chances to score. I don’t set goal targets, the only target I have here is for promotion and anything above that would be an added bonus, I really am not bothered about how many goals I get. I would love to score a shed load, but the main thing here is promotion.”
And Campbell is indeed bubbling with confidence when it comes to the Bluebirds’ chances of making the step up this time around.
Whilst at Hull, the striker had to go through the play-offs, seeing off Watford on route where a certain Malky Mackay was then coach.
But with the Bluebirds Campbell believes he won’t be requiring such a lottery to reach the promised land and he’s prepared to risk his summer break on it.
Campbell added: “I’m going to book my holidays for the day after the last game of the season. I’ve got no plans for the play-offs this time.”
Read more: Wales Online http://www.walesonline.co.uk/footballna ... z2JQoUyFys
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 8:42 am
Book is hols for the day after the hull game lol 
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 8:43 am
I hope he plays half as well as he talks. If so he'll make Messi's tally look pathetic 
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 9:15 am
HeFilmsTheClouds wrote:I hope he plays half as well as he talks. If so he'll make Messi's tally look pathetic
Again. All out of context, the actual interview was of a pretty humble lad willing
to praise others and not at all arrogant.
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 9:46 am
taffyapple wrote:HeFilmsTheClouds wrote:I hope he plays half as well as he talks. If so he'll make Messi's tally look pathetic
Again. All out of context, the actual interview was of a pretty humble lad willing
to praise others and not at all arrogant.
Where did I say he was arrogant?
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 1:22 pm
''Campbell has only scored one goal in the last year as he struggled to make an impact up on Wearside following his injury. Although that (''strike'') was at Old Trafford for Sunderland against the club where he arrived aged 10''.
It was a Header chiefs
It was a Header chiefs
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Wed Jan 30, 2013 3:41 pm
I like this lad already, seems genuine.
Re: Campbell - City well equipped for Premier League
Thu Jan 31, 2013 1:40 am
BlueSince82 wrote:I like this lad already, seems genuine.
He really does dont he.
Tbh the way he comes across in interviews is the complete opposite to what I expected.